Turning to FIG. 1, a conventional memory device 100 is illustrated. Such memory devices are typically used for applications such as digital camera image storage, music player music file storage (e.g., MP3s), storage ancillary to cellular telephones, non-volatile electronic memory storage for computing devices and servers, and the like. Such devices include a memory array 102 of individual memory cells (single-level or multi-level) where digital information may be stored, a memory interface 104 interfacing the memory array to a memory controller 106, and one or more external interfaces (e.g., SD, USB, PCMCIA, CF, CF2, and the like which are all well known to those of skill in the art) used for coupling the memory device to another device.
In accordance with standards which define the construction and operation of such memory devices (one of which is the SD Host Controller Simplified Specification Version 2.00 (Secure Digital Association, Feb. 8, 2007)), support for host applications such as digital rights management (DRM) schemes (an example of which is CPRM (Content Protection for Recordable Media)) is assisted by storing “application flags” along with the content in the memory array of the memory device. Such DRM/CPRM schemes are sometimes referred to collectively as media content protection applications. Sometimes referred to as “sector application flags” the application flags are commonly stored one per sector (smallest eraseable memory partition) throughout the memory array in which the corresponding content is stored. Such flags typically use 5 digital bits, one of which signals the validity/invalidity of the flag and the other four of which correspond to a field used by the host media content protection application.